11 BRONX WEEKLY January 12, 2020 www.BXTimes.com
Hoarder house debris continues to annoy neighbors
BY KYLE VUILLE
The battle between the NYC
Buildings Department, the NYC
Health Department and neighbors
of a senior citizen described as a
‘hoarder’ in Throggs Neck is still
ongoing, with no real solution in
sight.
The row house at 274 Balcom
Avenue, between Harding and
Lawton avenues sticks out like a
sore thumb.
The poorly maintained property
with its debris cluttered driveway
stands out in stark contrast to
the neighboring neatly kept attached
one-family brick homes.
All the other driveways and patios
are relatively clean and manicured.
Anyone walking past 274 Balcom
Avenue is immediately met
with the stench of human urine, feces
and piles of junk, buckets of rotting
organic matter and overgrown
weeds.
After months of complaints and
inspections of the property by city
agencies, an end to the dilemma
appeared close.
A November 17 hearing to
clean up of the property has failed
to resolve the issue.
According to a Buildings Department
spokesperson, the property’s
owner, Richard Kehrle, did
not show up for the hearing.
Kehrle, who inherited the home
from his parents, has lived in the
3-story brick home for over 50
years, but neighbors like Lauren
Torres, who lives in an identical
home, wants him to clean up his
act or get out.
Torres is grateful that the
colder weather has given her family
a reprieve from the horrid
stenches that loom from Kehrle’s
property.
“During the winter we get to
catch a break because the fl ies are
gone and the smells kind of freeze
over,” Torres said. “He’s still
bringing out buckets of urine and
poop though.”
Torres said Kehrle is also a
garbage hoarder, venturing out as
early as 8 a.m. to sort through the
neighborhood trash for ‘prizes’.
According to the DOH press offi
ce, the agency issued a violation
for harborage conditions (conducive
to rats) back in May 2019.
After two separate failed attempts
to gain access to the property
to clean it, the DOH issued a
COA (Commissioner’s Order to
Abate) on September 23, mandating
the owner to clean up the property
or additional escalating fi nes
would be issued.
There have been two more attempts,
one in October and another
in December, to help Kehrle
clean up his property since the
COA was issued, but it was denied
access by the home owner.
The Bronx Times Reporter
tried to reach Kehrle for a comment,
but he has locked his fence
to prevent anyone from stepping
foot on his property.
Kehrle’s obsession with collecting
waste and trash have his
neighbors questioning his mental
state.
According to the Anxiety and
Depression Association of America,
“hoarding can be related to
compulsive buying (such as never
passing up a bargain), the compulsive
acquisition of free items (such
as collecting fl yers), or the compulsive
search for perfect or unique
items (which may not appear to
others as unique, such as an old
container).”
View of 274 Balcom Ave. The Health Department and the Building Department has visited the residence several times in the
past months to attempt to help clean the property, but with no avail. Photo by Kyle Vuille/Schneps Media
TNBA names 2020 St. Patrick’s Day Parade grand marshals
BY KYLE VUILLE
Another year of Irish tradition and festivities
comes to Throggs Neck fi lled with
food, fun and family for the books.
Sunday, March 10 will mark the 22nd annual
Throggs Neck St. Patricks Day Parade,
with the parade taking off at noon on East
Tremont Avenue and Lafayette Avenue after
the 9 a.m. Mass at St. Benedicts Church
on 2969 Otis Avenue.
The St. Patricks Day Parade would not be
what it is without its grand marshals.
The parade committee recently announced
this year’s grand marshals are
Jack McCarrick and Sheila Haney.
Both McCarrick and Haney have deep
roots in the Bronx as well as being children
of Irish immigrants.
McCarrick’s father emigrated from Tubbercurry,
County Silgo and his mother from
Ballina, County Mayo. His parents met in
America, married and had a family of seven,
with McCarrick being the oldest.
Haney’s mother and father immigrated
to New York from Counties Leitrim and
Silgo. They met at an Irish dance, got married
and raised three children.
“My family went back to Ireland just
after I turned 4-years-old, and I vividly remember
all of my experiences on the farm,”
Haney said. “I have shared those stories
and our history with my children over the
years.”
Haney landed in Throggs Neck after
marrying her husband, Edward ‘Mickey’
Haney in St. Luke’s parish in 1956.
Haney and her husband raised six children
during those years. The couple worked
hard so their children could attend parish
school and then Preston High School and St.
Raymond’s Boys High School.
McCarrick and his wife, Marie, started
their family of three in Throggs Neck after
college. McCarrick and his wife both attended
Spellman High School.
McCarrick went to Manhattan College
and graduated with a Bachelor of Science
Degree in Physics.
His work career started at the NYC Mass
Transit Authority where he stayed for a decade
before working for Con Edison, Sharp
Electronics, Canon USA and more.
Both McCarrick and Haney have been
civic leaders since living in Throggs Neck.
McCarrick has been spearheading the
local parish blood drive and will hit his
80th donation in the spring.
McCarrick belongs to the Knights of Columbus
Council 306, is the president of the
Ancient Order of Hiberians, the secretary
for the New York Archdiocesan Holy Name
Society and an offi cer of the Throggs Neck
Homeowners Association.
Haney is retired, but worked at St. Raymond’s
for many years and watched a whole
generation of neighborhood boys grow into
young men.
However, Haney holds the distinction of
being the longest running volunteer for the
Throggs Neck Benevolent Association and
the parade committee working behind the
scenes.
The importance of religion and their
Irish heritage are what McCarrick and
Haney truly fi nd meaningful about the holiday
and the parade
“For me, my faith and my Irish heritage
are so closely intertwined – they just go together,”
Haney said.
McCarrick said he feels honored to be following
in the footsteps of family members
and good friends who have been grand marshals
in the past.
Haney and McCarrick have never missed
a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Throggs Neck
since its inception 21 years ago.
Sheila Haney was recently named one of the two
Grand Marshals for the 2020 St. Patrick’s Day Parade
celebration by the Throggs Neck Benevolent
Association. Photo courtesy of Sheila Haney
Jack McCarrick and his wife, Marie. Jack was
named one of two Grand Marshals for the 2020
St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Throggs Neck.
Photo courtesy of Jack McCarrick
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